A recent incident on a United Airlines flight has left a passenger furious after they were moved from their assigned seat to make room for an oversized service dog.
The passenger, who was flying from San Diego to Denver, shared their experience on Reddit, describing the situation as “absurd.” According to the complaint, the service dog was too large to fit under the seat, so it was allowed to sit on the passenger’s own seat. The passenger had initially boarded the flight and was surprised to find the large dog already occupying their seat.
“When I boarded, this enormous ‘service’ dog was sitting on my seat,” the passenger explained. “The dog was too big to fit on the floor, and when I asked a flight attendant, she just shrugged.”
After trying unsuccessfully to resolve the situation with the dog’s owner, the passenger was told that the flight was full, and there were no other seats available. Eventually, a flight attendant found an alternative seat for the passenger, but the dog remained on the original seat throughout the flight.
The passenger felt that the situation was unreasonable, especially given that they had paid for their seat, while the dog was taking up space. “It’s ridiculous that a dog could displace a paying passenger,” the passenger added. “United needs to address this issue with passengers abusing the ‘service animal’ policy.”
United Airlines has specific rules regarding service dogs. According to the airline, service dogs must sit in the floor space in front of their owner, not in the aisle or occupying other passengers’ seats. The passenger noted that while gate agents carefully check carry-on bag sizes, the size of service dogs doesn’t seem to be monitored, which contributed to the confusion and frustration.
The complaint sparked a debate among commenters, with many supporting the passenger’s frustration. Some people pointed out that service dogs are required to sit at the passenger’s feet for safety reasons, not on seats. Others, including a disability lawyer, explained that if a service dog encroaches on another passenger’s seat or foot space, the handler must purchase a second seat.
United Airlines’ policy clearly states that service dogs must stay in the floor space in front of their handler and cannot occupy the aisle or the seats of other passengers. The airline has yet to respond to this specific incident, but passengers continue to share their opinions on how the situation could have been better handled.
